WineSnark.com Is A Finalist For “Best New Wine Blog.”
WineSnark.com has been named a finalist for the Wine Blog Awards “Best New Wine Blog“. You can vote for your favorite new wine blog, or you can vote for WineSnark.
In recognition of this prestigious honor I have chosen today to reveal my humble beginnings …
Wise-Ass 101 or How I Found My Voice.
I don’t know how they know these things, but when my brother was born the doctor told my mother he would grow up to be very tall. When I was born he told my mom I would grow up to be a wise-ass.
In hindsight it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when I recently realized the truth in something a wise man said to me many years ago. That man was Mr. McCracken, my seventh grade science teacher, and what he said was, “Carter, you’re a wise-ass. You always have been and you always will be.”
You know what a wise-ass is, don’t you? He’s the guy who always has the snarky answer – the smart-alec, the class clown, the wisenheimer. McCracken had me pegged on the first day of class. We engaged in many battles of wit, but to level the playing field I fought with my right brain tied behind my back.
Read MoreLet Me Make This Clear; Racking, Fining & Filtering.
Chapter Twelve, Part Seven.
Once wine has fermented in a barrel, or been transferred into a barrel for aging from a fermentation vessel made of stainless steel, cement, or your bathtub, sediment will gradually form and settle to the bottom. If this thick, burgundy-hued sludge isn’t separated from the wine it could end up in your wine glass. Then it would only be a matter of time until Riedel introduced a line of spoons to go with their stemware.
To get rid of sediment and other unwanted byproducts, most wine is racked, fined and filtered before bottling.
Read MoreGetting ‘Stuck’ In Napa, Then A Visit To Rombauer Vineyards.
Last night I threw my glasses on the nightstand and then had the strangest feeling that someone was watching me.
Sometimes fermentations get stuck. The winemaker has all of the ingredients in place, the yeast organisms are happily gorging themselves on grape sugars and (cue the heavenly trumpets) wine is being born.
Then it stops.
Finicky yeast organisms can become dormant for any number of reasons. The temperature may get too high or the grapes might be too ripe. Whatever the reason, the results are the same and the winemaker starts pounding down Rolaids faster than Kathy Lee Gifford pounds down Chardonnay.
Well maybe not that fast.
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